New York, NY - Sept 6, 2024: The elephants have arrived! Today, the Meatpacking District Management Association (Meatpacking BID) in partnership with Elephant Family USA, an international non-governmental organization (NGO) dedicated to helping the human race share space with the world's magnificent wildlife, will unveil 100 life-sized Indian elephant sculptures in New York City’s Meatpacking District. From September 6 through October 20, 2024, this head-turning herd, spread across the neighborhood, will captivate visitors of all ages while amplifying indigenous knowledge and sharing a message about human-wildlife coexistence and conservation.
One of the largest public art installations in New York City since Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s The Gates in 2005, The Great Elephant Migration marks the city’s first “migration” of this scale and purpose. This global fundraising adventure benefits indigenous and community-led conservation efforts. Specifically, it provides resources for conservation NGOs supporting remarkable people around the world who have found ways to live alongside lions, leopards, elephants, and some of the planet’s most challenging animals. Beyond that important work, this installation inspires peaceful, symbiotic human and animal coexistence. Each elephant is one-of-a-kind in the 100-strong herd on display, created by the Coexistence Collective, a community of 200 Indigenous artisans living within India’s Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, who have reclaimed an invasive plant species called Lantana camara that has entangled 300,000 square kilometers of India's forests and diminished food sources for all herbivores. Using Lantana as material, the collective has recreated every elephant they live alongside, known well by name and personality, in intricately detailed sculptural form.
The creation of these elephants provides financial stability, status and pride to 200 members of the Soligas, Bettakurumbas, Kattunayakan and Paniyas tribes, who coexist with the real wild elephants the herd is based on. Since arriving in Newport, RI on July 4th, 2024, The Great Elephant Migration has raised $1 million so far in the U.S., to raise $10 million in total, making it the biggest sustainable indigenous enterprise in India. This effort celebrates their knowledge of the natural world and rewards a remarkable ability to coexist.
Placemaking and Cultural Celebrations in Meatpacking
The exhibition is co-presented by Art&Newport and curated by founder Dodie Kazanjian. For the duration of the installation, the Elephant Headquarters and shop by LOVE BRAND & Co. will be located at 423 West 14th Street. Throughout the neighborhood, there will be additional artwork accompanying the sculptures, including a multidisciplinary installation by artist Hadi Falapishi which will be located at 82 Gansevoort Street in late September and an exhibition by photographer Michael Turek which will be on display from October 18–20 at 423 W 14th Street.
With the support of High Line Stages, related programming, events, and activations in Meatpacking will continue into late October to honor and celebrate the mission of The Great Elephant Migration. On Tuesday, September 10 the BID will host a panel in The Maker’s Studio at Chelsea Market on key themes surrounding conservation and coexistence: Coexistence and Community From Nilgiris to New York. The discussion will challenge audience members to revisit longstanding notions of conservation as the separation of the wild and human worlds and instead think of humans and wildlife existing on one, integrated "gradient" of coexistence. The panel will also tell the socioeconomic and political empowerment stories of the tribes and, through an exploration of the work of the Jamaica Bay-Rockaway Park Conservancy, present ways in which New Yorkers coexist with the natural world.
Dr. Tarsh Thekaekara, Coexistence Collective Co-Founder; Terri Carta, Executive Director of Jamaica Bay-Rockaway Parks Conservancy; Ruth Ganesh, Coexistence Collective Co-Founder and Elephant Family USA Trustee; and Jeffrey LeFrancois, Executive Director of the Meatpacking District will explore innovative conservation approaches that embrace the reality of humans and wildlife coexisting rather than separation of the two worlds. The event is free and open to the public. More details are available here.
“After months of anticipation, the herd has officially arrived in the Meatpacking District! With thanks to all the city agencies that helped make this possible, we are thrilled to welcome this striking installation that helps spread the message of coexistence to all who visit,” said Jeffrey LeFrancois, Executive Director of the Meatpacking District. “Seeing these lifesize sculpted elephants along the storied cobblestone streets is stunning, and if you listen closely, you might even hear a trumpet. It also shows what is possible when creative communities come together to shape an extraordinary moment in time that produces an image just as powerful as the message behind the installation.”
“Art allows us to engage with our shared humanity and celebrate what unites us instead of what divides us,” said New York City Mayor Eric Adams. “This public art installation, led in partnership with the Meatpacking District Management Association and Elephant Family USA, highlights the importance to protect wildlife and the need to live in harmony on our planet. New York City remains the arts capital of the globe thanks to these bold, forward-thinking installations.”
“Truely special that The Great Elephant Migration will connect the artisans of India with New York City in an innovative and beautiful way,” said Mr. Binaya Pradhan, Consul General, Consulate General of India - New York. “Besides promoting conservation, this will also promote better understanding of Indian Culture, diversity and society in the United States. Sincere thanks to the organizers.”
"Public art sparks the creativity and chance encounters that communities and neighborhoods are built on," said New York City Council Member Shekar Krishnan, Chair of the Committee on Parks & Recreation. "As a passionate advocate for public open space, and as the first Indian-American elected to New York City government, I'm so excited to welcome this Indian elephant herd to the cobblestone streets and plazas of the Meatpacking District."
“Once again the Meatpacking District is leading the way when it comes to artistic innovation, this time by hosting the Great Elephant Migration. This stunning display of public art supports indigenous Indian artists and sends a powerful message about the importance of learning to coexist with the natural environment in our ever-changing climate. I strongly encourage all New Yorkers to come see this free exhibition before the herd migrates away from New York City in mid-October,” said New York State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal.
As headline sponsor for New York, Indian fashion house Sabyasachi will host an elephant from the herd outside their flagship store on Christopher Street.
“Preservation is at the core of what we both do. Elephant Family with their conservation of the world's endangered animals, and Sabyasachi in our safe-guarding of heritage craft and traditional skills, are ensuring the continuity of humanity’s shared treasures for future generations,” said Sabyasachi founder Sabyasachi Mukherjee.
Conservation Miracle and Model for Harmonious Living
Both the human and elephant populations of India have doubled in size since 1980, (currently 1.4 Billion and 30,000, respectively) demonstrating an extraordinary example of harmonious coexistence in a developing world. The Great Elephant Migration is designed to raise millions of dollars to help fund projects that enable people and wildlife around the world to live closer together than ever before, in harmony. Each of the elephant sculptures can be purchased, with prices ranging from $8,000 for a baby up to $22,000 for a tusker. Leading NGOs from around the world working to enable human wildlife coexistence will benefit from funds raised via the sale of the elephant sculptures, including New York City’s Wild Bird Fund, INDIGENOUS LED, Lion Guardians, and Coexistence Consortium. See below for a full list of Partner NGOs.
“All the way from the rocky seaside cliffs of Newport to the cobblestoned streets of downtown New York, the elephants are finally here! It’s a spectacular sight: life-sized elephants roaming up and down 9th Avenue, poised at 14th street as if they are considering whether or not to cross the road. I hope this exhibition reminds us of our deep and inherent connection to the natural world, and inspires us to better share space, both with animals and each other,” says Ruth Ganesh, Coexistence Collective Co-Founder and Elephant Family USA Trustee.
“Recognizing that animals are individuals with their personalities is vitally important for the coexistence movement. Individual animals may cause damage or pose a threat to humans, but not an entire species. Indigenous people around-the-world think of animals as ‘other-than-human persons’, which fosters a deeper respect for all living beings, where humans and animals can live together more harmoniously,” said Dr. Tarsh Thekaekara, Coexistence Collective Co-Founder.
A Matriarchal Migration
The Great Elephant Migration is a women-led conservation effort, reflecting the matriarchal structures that elephants uphold in the wild, with each herd led by an elder, experienced female. To further honor this, the campaign has formed “The Matriarchy,” a group of influential women across diverse fields from environmentalists and philanthropists to storytellers and creatives, which will rally support for human-wildlife coexistence throughout the Migration. Current members of the Matriarchy include Cher, Kristin Davis, Kris Tompkins, Diane Von Furstenberg, Padma Lakshmi, and Dr. Sylvia Earle, with more to be announced.
The tour will travel from East to West Coast across the United States, in a massive collaboration with indigenous artisans, contemporary artists, volunteers, and cultural institutions. After the herd’s time in Newport, Rhode Island, where the migration began, and the Meatpacking District, the elephants are set to travel to Miami, Blackfeet Nation, Buffalo Pastures in Browning, Montana, Jackson Hole, and Los Angeles throughout 2025. From Jackson Hole to Los Angeles, the sculptures will be transported by a convoy of electric trucks adorned with Indian lorry art, each towing a single elephant. From the cobblestones of the Big Apple’s Meatpacking District to breathtaking ocean vistas and rugged mountains onto the vibrant streets of L.A., this journey will symbolize the experience of migratory animals in a human-dominated world.
For more information on the Meatpacking District installation, visit meatpacking-district.com, and to learn more about The Great Elephant Migration’s conservation mission, visit TheGreatElephantMigration.org.
